Again, when we are rolling out the program this fall, we talk about the implications into the daycare providers, and the contributions they get from ECE is based on enrolment, the enrolment of the child in the daycare system. We’ll continue to support those areas.
That’s okay. I’m two for two. Two questions, no answers. I’ll keep going.
Is it sanctioned and condoned and supported by this particular Minister that when a government official tells these people in a roomful of parents and daycare operators, et cetera, that if you could budget and manage your money better this wouldn’t be a problem? These are parents telling me this. Does the Minister stand by those words?
With any organization there is a budgeting process. We have to work with that. As the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, we provide public money to these organizations. There is the accountability issue and transparency issues, so we’ll continue to support that.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
Mr. Speaker the government official continues on by saying if you can’t manage your own money, give us your budgets and we’ll do it for you, and by the way, you probably won’t notice any change. What facts support that when the government takes a third of the revenue stream and moves them over to Junior Kindergarten, and the government seems to be telling everybody, don’t worry, go to the schools for free child care, but don’t worry, lots of people still want to pay $1,000 a month, so you’ve got no problems. What does the government think about that and does the Minister stand by that, that they’re offering to say if you cannot manage your own budgets we’ll do them for you?
As I stated in this House, I did meet with both YK 1 and the Catholic School Board just a couple days ago, and we’re compiling all the numbers now. We want to have the true facts and the true numbers. That will be before us early next week and we will be releasing that to the public.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to continue on with my question on the issue of hydraulic fracking. I want to ask the Minister of ITI in his capacity with this information.
I spoke to one of the leaders from Fort Liard. The leader had said that they did have some fracking in his region. Have there been any other types of fracking in the Northwest Territories in the last 15 or 20 years?
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe there has been some, but it was not horizontally drilled and fractured but vertically drilled and fractured. I believe there has been some in the Northwest Territories over the past few decades. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, the commonality that we have is there have been fracking operations in the Northwest Territories. Vertical, or the new one now we are using is called horizontal, so there has been fracking in the Northwest Territories.
I would like the Minister to provide me with more detailed information as to what type of impacts it had in those regions.
Have there been environmental studies? Is water being studied after that, or the air, the animals? That is so we have some baseline information as to where those actual fracking operations went in the Northwest Territories. Can the Minister do that?
Mr. Speaker, we would be happy to try and get that information together for the Member. Back in the ‘70s near the Northwest Territories/British Columbia border, there was some fracking that took place and, again, at Beaver River. I would be happy to get that information for the Member. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, also I would ask the Minister, given in the time of the ‘70s, what type of authority, what type of working relationship and if it’s possible that when that fracking operation happened at Beaver River. I’m not too sure where exactly it is and what type of impacts we are seeing today in 2014 from that operation even though it is a vertical frack. A frack is a frack is a frack. I want to ask the Minister if that is possible.
Mr. Speaker, all those operations would have been under COGOA back in the ‘70s with the federal government. We will do our best to try to get that information for the Member. Of course, now we are responsible for onshore regulation of oil and gas here in the Northwest Territories. I will make a commitment to the Member that we will try our best to get that information to the Member. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.
Mr. Speaker, I certainly look for that information. I want to ask my last question to the Minister and to his colleague, that the Sahtu people have a land claim, a constitutionally protected document that was negotiated by the guidance of our elders in the Sahtu to take control of our destiny.
What type of approach is set by this department and this government on another protected area that is protected by the Constitution and jurisdiction as how do we work in relationship with land claim organizations that have these types of protection in regards to decision-making authorities on types of economic opportunities that are in that region?
Mr. Speaker, the land claim is a very powerful tool for the people of the Sahtu and a valuable tool in that I do understand there are subsurface rights included in that land claim. As far as our government is concerned, we need to continue to work with the leadership in the Sahtu, and decisions are going to have to be made together with the people of the Sahtu so that they can get their way forward by working together with us. That is the way things are going to continue to happen. We have a track record of continuing to work with the Member, the leadership in the Sahtu, and we are going to continue down that path. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a question for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. The department provides funding to eight district education authorities in the NWT according to a predetermined formula. Elementary and secondary school contributions are provided to education authorities based on government priorities and education needs. This funding framework plays a pivotal role in directing and supporting education councils to achieve education objectives. School contributions are calculated based on enrolment and to cover annual operating and maintenance costs.
Provide a breakdown showing the comparison of GNWT funding for divisional education councils to the Yellowknife education authorities.
In this comparison, include the total student enrolments per divisional education council and district education authority and any special funding that they receive; for example, small school allocations, inclusion funding, et cetera.
Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Monday, June 2, 2014, I will move the following motion: Now therefore I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, that the Legislative Assembly strongly recommends that the Department of Health and Social Services devise a system of compensating medical and non-medical travel escorts for their time, with the goal of implementing the system in the fiscal year 2015-16; and further, that the government provide a comprehensive response to this motion within 120 days. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Item 16, notices of motion for first reading of bills. Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I give notice that on Monday, June 2, 2014, I will move that Bill 28, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 3, 2014-2015, be read for the first time. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Item 17, motions. Colleagues, we will call a 15-minute break.
---SHORT RECESS
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Monfwi, that Bill 27, Miscellaneous Statute Law Amendment Act, 2014, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Bill 27 has had first reading.
---Carried
Mr. Bouchard.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Kam Lake, that Bill 26, An Act to Amend the Elections and Plebiscites Act, be read for the first time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Bill 26 has had first reading.
---Carried
Item 19, second reading of bills. Item 20, consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters, with Mrs. Groenewegen in the chair.
I call Committee of the Whole to order. We have one item before us today on our agenda, Bill 24, An Act to Amend the Student Financial Assistance Act. What is the wish of the committee? Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Madam Chair. We would like to deal with Bill 24 today.
Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you. I’d like to ask the Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment if he would like to read his opening remarks. Minister Lafferty.
Mahsi, Madam Speaker. I am pleased to introduce Bill 24, An Act to Amend the Student Financial Assistance Act. The purpose of this legislation is to raise the maximum aggregate of the principal amounts of all student loans that may be made by the Government of the Northwest Territories.
The maximum aggregate principal amount of student loans that the government may lend under the Student Financial Assistance Act is currently set at $40 million. The amendment proposes to increase this amount to $45 million for the fiscal year 2014-2015 and thereafter. This change is required to allow the Department of Education, Culture and Employment to continue providing student financial assistance at current benefit levels.
I trust that Members will agree that this amendment is appropriate and necessary.
I would be pleased to answer any questions the Members may have. Mahsi, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister Lafferty. I’d like to ask the Minister if he’d like to bring witnesses into the Chamber.
Yes, I would.
Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Agreed, thank you. I’ll ask the Sergeant-at-Arms to please escort the witnesses to the table.
Minister Lafferty, could you please introduce your witnesses for the record?
Mahsi, Madam Chair. To my left is Jolene Saturnino. She’s the director of income security within the ECE department. Also, to my right is Ken Chutskoff, legislative counsel within Justice. Mahsi.
Thank you, Minister Lafferty. Before we proceed with general comments, I’d like to ask the chair of the Standing Committee on Social Programs, Mr. Moses, if he would like to bring the committee’s remarks. Mr. Moses.
